Welcome to Survival of the Fittest, a RPing board loosely based off of Koshun Takami's Battle Royale, with its own unique plot and spin on the 'deadly game'. We've been around quite a while, and are now in our thirteenth year, so don't worry about us going anywhere any time soon!

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Ruby still wasn't entirely sure what to think as she walked down the sidewalk, the image of Brian begging her for forgiveness still fresh in her mind.

She'd stopped crying nearly an hour ago, but her face was still red from all the tears. As upset as she was with how badly her break-up with Brian had gone, a part of her did try to rationalise what had happened and put everything in perspective. After all, in the end she had achieved more-or-less exactly what she had wanted. She and Brian were no longer together, and Brian was now with someone who obviously wanted him as much as he probably wanted... Well, him. So what was there to be upset about?

Oh right, there was also the little fact that Brian kinda jumped the gun. As much as Ruby wanted to believe that Brian was telling the truth about never intending on cheating on her, the fact remained that one way or another he DID. God knows how she would have reacted if she hadn't intended on breaking up with him anyway. Hell, she was feeling pretty betrayed anyway regardless of the fact that she didn't want to be in that kind of relationship with him in the first place.

Then again, there was also the thought that if she hadn't put off telling him the truth, then he probably would have never done anything like that in the first place. There was also the thought that the only reason he was driven to cheat on her in the first place was because of how much she had been distancing him for the past week. If it weren't for the fact that their relationship had taken a particularly awkward turn, then he might of never even considered doing such a thing in the first place.

Then again...

For fuck's sake Ruby, get a grip of yourself! What's done is done, and you can't spend the rest of your life worrying about how things could have gone had you told him sooner.

Come to think of it, she never got around to telling him that she had planned on breaking up with him anyway. Great, now that meant that she'd have to confront him AGAIN, an until then he'd be feeling even more guilty than he would if he knew that she didn't want to continue dating him in the first place. Which in turn made HER feel guilty about not letting him know when she had the chance. Sure, she could always text him about it, but that'd hardly be the most sensitive way of letting him know. No, only thing she could do was wait until tomorrow to confront him properly about it.

In the meantime, there was only one place in the world that Ruby wanted to be at that particular moment in time. Funnily enough though, that place wasn't home. After all, given how badly things had gone, the last thing she wanted to do right now was just head to bed. She wanted to talk to someone about, share her thoughts and ask for advice one what she should do next. And given how there was only one person who knew the truth about her feelings towards Brian...

Sure enough, just around the corner she found the house that she was looking for, and after taking a deep breath she walked up to the door and knocked on it three times. Whilst the person who opened it wasn't quite who she was looking for, she knew exactly what to ask them.

As Ruby followed Regan's mother upstairs, it slowly began to dawn on her that she still wasn't entirely sure what she was going to actually say to her best friend.

She knew that, on way or another, the conversation was eventually going to lead to her recounting how the split up went. But how she was going to actually get to that point, or word it for that matter, was something she'd still yet to figure out. Hell, she wasn't even sure what kind of reaction she was expecting from Regan. Pity? Anger? Shock? A part of her was tempted to change her mind and head back home, even though she knew fine well that she couldn't back out now. Besides, deep down inside Ruby knew that she had to tell Regan now in person, rather than wait until the inevitable gossip began to spread. Last thing she wanted was for Regan to learn about what happened from some third party source who knew nothing about how it really went down. Just take a deep breath, tell her what happened, then...

...Then, who knows. Guess I'll just have to play it by year.

As she entered Regan's room, the look of surprise on her friends face reminded Ruby of yet another thing she had failed to consider. Specifically, actually letting Regan know in advance if it was okay for her to show up in the first place. Crap, that's the second time tonight that I've surprised someone. Oh well, at least this time I didn't accidentally catch someone in the middle of something compromising.

Aafter Regan's mother had left the room, Ruby opened her mouth to speak, only to be silenced as her friend went about making sure her room was in a more presentable state. As tempted as she was to tell Regan not to worry, given how chaotic her own room looked at the moment, she decided to let Regan do as she pleased if it made her feel more comfortable. It wasn't exactly the first time Ruby had ever been in Regan's room before. The sheer number of comics, posters and DVDs that littered the place never failed to astound her. Back in her own room, she barely had enough books, games and DVDs to fill one bookcase. And as for posters, the only ones Ruby had in her own room was a Reservoir Dogs one and an old Slayers poster she'd owned for god knows how long. In any case, Regan's attempts at tidying the place up did give Ruby one last opportunity to think about how exactly she was going to word this.

However, by the time Regan finally asked how it went, Ruby still wasn't entirely sure. For a brief moment, she almost replied with 'Oh yeah, everything's fine' on instinct, only stopping herself at the very last minute when she realised how that would that would completely undermine the whole point of why she was there in the first place.

"Oh, i'm fine... Ish.... Um, sorry about showing up so suddenly, I meant to send you a text in advance but I kinda... Forgot..."

Wow, off to a fantastic start, aren't we?

"You, uh, mind if I sit down?" she said after a moment's silence, sitting herself down on Regan's bed.

"I like what you've done with your room... Is, uh, that a new poster? Could have sworn that wasn't there the last time I was here." she said, unsure as to what to say next. Damnit Ruby, why're you acting so nervous all of a sudden? She's your friend! You should be feeling relaxed around her, and yet for some reason your acting more jittery then you were on your first date with Brian...

After allowing Regan the opportunity to talk about her poster, Ruby sighed and decided to cut to the chase. Unless she wanted to spend the next hour or so avoiding the subject, she had just get herself together and say what needed to be said.

"Anyway, I... I'm guessing that you want to know how it went, between me and Brian."

Okay, better...

"A-And, I'm guessing you can already tell that things didn't go quite as smoothly as I'd originally planned."

Good good, keep it up. Don't falter now.

"Well... Okay, here's how it went. After I spoke with you earlier, I texted Brian asking him if I could meet up with him at seven. He didn't reply immediately, but when he did he asked if I could meet him at McDonalds at eight instead. I agreed at first, but later I ended up getting a bit... Well, impatient, so I decided to surprise him by arriving at his apartment ten minutes before we were supposed to meet. I've no idea why that seemed like such a good idea at the time, but, whatever... The thing is."

She stopped for a moment, allowing herself the chance to take a deep breath before continuing.

"The thing is... When I arrived at his apartment, I realised that he was not... Well, alone, if you catch my drift."

She paused again, allowing Regan the chance to figure out what she meant. In all honesty, she wouldn't be surprised if she'd figured out that's what happened ages ago.

"So... Yeah. When he realised I was there, he immediately jumped up and started rambling on about how sorry he was, and how he hadn't meant to do it in the first place, etcetera etcetera... At the time, I was too pissed off with him to listen to any of it. I mean, I know that the whole reason I was there in the first place was so that I could split up with him, but... Jesus, how else could I react to something like that? After pretending to love him for so long just to keep him happy, he goes ahead and makes out with fucking Kenji of all people! Yes, THAT Kenji! I'm still not sure which took me more by surprise. The fact that Brian was having an affair in the first place, or the fact that he was having one with a guy."

She stopped herself when she realised how worked up she was getting, and decided to wait a moment to allow herself to cool down.

"So... Yeah, long story short, it probably could have gone a lot better."

Whilst Ruby wasn't exactly sure as to how Regan would react to the new, by the end of her explanation she had considered a number of possibilities. Maybe she would react by trying to cheer her up with a joke or two? Maybe she would try to comfort her with some cliche words of wisdom? Or maybe she would just completely freeze up and the two of them end up having to endure a long awkward silence?

One thing she hadn't expected though, or even considered for that matter, was that Regan would hug her.

At first, she wasn't exactly sure how to react. She was so surprised that it took a moment for her to even acknowledge what was going on. Not that she was complaining in the least, though. Quite the opposite actually. Once the surprise had worn off, it didn't take long for her to wrap her own arms around Regan and hug her back, holding her just as tightly as she herself was being held as she rested her head on Regan's shoulder. As she lost herself to the embrace, she couldn't help but feel a lone tear trickle down her cheek, one which she was quick to remove with her finger before her friend noticed.

As she sat there, holding Regan against her and listening to what she had to say, she couldn't help but feel... Well, she wasn't exactly sure how she was feeling. But whatever it was, it felt good. Like, really REALLY good. To the point where she was beginning to wonder whether or not friends were supposed to feel this good whilst embracing one another. It wasn't as if they had never hugged before, although as far as she could recall all their previous hugs had been brief and light hearted. This one on the other hand was different to the others. There was just something special about it. Something she just couldn't put her finger on. For now though, she was content to just relax and enjoy it for as long as possible.

When Regan finally relaxed the hug to talk face-to-face, Ruby couldn't help but notice that her friend seemed to be red in the face. Was she... Blushing? Why would she do that? Come to think of it, her own face happened to be feeling warm as well. Did that mean she was blushing too?

Those weren't the only thoughts running through Ruby's head as she sat there listening to Regan, whose face was so close she could see her own reflection in her eyes. For reasons she'd yet to fully understand, she couldn't help but admire just how attractive her friend was. With her cute heart-shaped face, her sweet lips and the gorgeous smiles they formed. But, it some ways most of all, were her eyes. Her beautiful, light-blue eyes. It was normal for her to think that, right? Just a mutual appreciation of another woman's attractiveness. It was hardly the first time those thoughts crossed her mind whenever she was talking to Regan, or any particularly attractive girl for that matter. In fact, why was she even thinking about that right now?

At that point, Regan distracted her thoughts yet again when she jokingly suggested that Ruby pretend to fool around with another girl just to get back at Brian. The fact that Ruby had no intention of getting her own back at Brian aside, she couldn't deny that the idea amused her, if anything because of how ironic it would be. At any rate, it was enough bring a smile to her face, one which continued to grow warmer as Regan brought her in for another hug.

"Whatever you decide, it's going to be okay. You'll find someone you're happy with, someone you don't need to pretend for. This is just a little road-bump. You'll see. It's all going to work out in the end."

For a moment, Ruby was content to just lose herself to the embrace. To say that she was now feeling better would have been something of an understatement. If anything, she probably hadn't felt this good in a long, long time. Why exactly was that the case, she wasn't entirely sure. But whatever it was, she had Regan to thank for it. And she'd be damned if she couldn't come up with a good way to repay her friend for her kindness.

On that note, Ruby pulled back so that she was looking into Regan's eyes again, a warm smile on her face as she began to talk.

"I... I don't know what to say, but... Thank you. I can't even begin to describe how much better I'm feeling."

She paused for a moment, holding back the urge to let a few tears drop before finally carrying on.

"Really though, I... I don't think I could ever thank you enough, for everything really. For all the good times we've shared together, for always knowing exactly what to say to make me laugh, or cheer me up. But most of all, for always being there to comfort me whenever nobody else could."

That time, not even all the willpower in the world could have stopped the single tear that found itself flowing down her cheek.

"You've been a better friend to me than anyone else has, more than a friend really... And.... And I......"

...I think I might be in love with you.

.....

Wait, what? Where did THAT thought come from? I don't love Regan, at least, not in THAT way. We're just friends, that's all! Friend's are allowed to deeply care for each other, right? They're also allowed to admire their friend for being attractive as well, right? It's not as if I've never felt this way about a guy before, right? Even if I can't think of anyone right off the top of my head, I'm sure I must of at some point, right? Regan is my friend, she always has been. Nothing more, nothing less.

...If that's that case, then why did I just kiss her?

She suddenly opened her eyes, not even realising that she had shut them in the first place, to find Regan's staring right back at her and her lips pressed against her own. The kiss had only lasted a few second, but for Ruby it felt as though it had lasted an entire lifetime. At the very least, it had lasted long enough for a countless number of thoughts and feelings the run through her head, the biggest of which being WHY she kissed Regan in the first place. Did she do it on impulse without even realising it? Surely not. A part of her wondered whether or not she had been desperate to do so for ages now, and after being briefly distracted by the thought of actually loving Regan, her subconscious took it upon itself to do what she probably would have never done herself in a million years. What if it was Regan who had started the kiss? Or hell, what if they both did at the exact same time?

Whatever the case, what was done was done, and as Ruby pulled back she immediately began to apologise profusely.

"Oh god, I-I-I'm so sorry. I don't know why I did that, I... I... Jesus, why did I just do that?!?"

What she didn't say was that the next biggest question on her mind, right behind why she kissed Regan in the first place, was why had she enjoyed it so much.

Well, for the second time that evening, Regan reacted in a way that Ruby hadn't expected her to.

Her apologetic babbling gradually died down as her friend began to giggle, her head tilting ever so slightly as her left eyebrow raised in confusion. Was this for real? She had been expecting something more along the lines of a long awkward silence, or maybe even a shocked outburst. Sure, she couldn't recall a single moment when she'd seen Regan be angry at anything, but it struck her as a far more likely reaction then the one she was currently witnessing.

What exactly did this mean? Did Regan find something about this whole situation funny? Was it something she had said whilst she was apologising for what just happened? Or maybe... Maybe she DID genuinely enjoy.... No, surely not. That can't be right. Since when did Regan enjoy getting kissed by other girls? As far as she knew, Regan had always been straight, right? At the very least, she never showed any interest in other girls... Then again, had she ever seen Regan show any interest in boys either? She always just assumed that was because she didn't like broaching that subject, but now that she thought about Regan had never said ANYTHING to indicate that she was remotely interest in members of the opposite sex. Then again, come to think of it, neither did she. But that didn't mean that they were both... No, that was just...

Then again, she HAD enjoyed that kiss. More so than any of the ones she'd ever shared with Brian. Was that just a coincidence? And come to think of it, she always wondered why Regan was so obsessed with Catwoman...

Nonono, this is crazy. She obviously must be thinking about this too deeply. There's no way that... Naaaw, that can't be right. Besides, she still doesn't know whether or not Regan really did enjoy it or not.

Once the giggling was over, Regan began to assure her that it's okay, her cheeks still glowing a bright shade of red. After which, she then went on to say that...

...Oh, so she definitely enjoyed it after all. So much so in fact, that before Ruby could say anything in response, Regan leaned forward and kissed her back. Any lingering doubts about whether or not she really had enjoyed kissing Regan were flushed away the moment her friend's lips made contact with her own. She would have been surprised had it not been for great it felt. No, on second thoughts, it wasn't great. It was bloody fantastic. If anything, she was more surprised at the fact that she was disappointed when Regan eventually pulled back.

"It was so great that I needed to try it again."

After a brief moment of silence, Ruby finally replied with a simple "...Oh."

She paused again, her eyes drifting down to look at Regan's hand clutching her own before returning her gaze to her friend's eyes. Her stunning, light-blue eyes... Oh god, this is... I have no idea what this is.

The more she thought about it, the more it gradually began to make more sense. So much so that she was beginning to wonder why the hell she never realised it earlier. All this time, she had assumed her affectionate feelings towards Regan were just the kind that close friends had for each other. Perhaps if Regan was a boy she would have realised it much sooner, after all it hadn't been until now that she began to truly wonder whether or not the reason why she never loved Brian was simply because she was... Well, to put it bluntly, a lesbian. Sure, the thought had struck her before, but until now she had always brushed it aside. Now that she was genuinely thinking about it though, it all made perfect sense.

Not that a part of her still had some doubts, though.

"...I-I mean, I was just... You know, we're really good friends, I was feeling upset, and it was just. Y'know, a friendly smooch, which is perfectly normal thing for friends to do right? Nothing out of the ordinary, nope. 'Cause we're just really REALLY close friends, right?"

Yeah... You realise you're only kidding yourself, right?

She nibbled her lower lips nervously, her gaze slowly drifting to Regan's smile before returning to her eyes.

"Th-This was just... You know, one of those funny little secret moments between good friends, or something. In a few weeks time we'll be looking back on this and laughing about it. Just two good friends who shared a harmless little kiss... Sure, they probably enjoyed it a little more than friends usually should, but it's still just a kiss. Nothing more, nothing... Less."

The more she continued to ramble on, the more she gradually wanted to lean forward and kiss Regan again. Just once more, for good luck. And sure enough, once she had finished talking, she did find herself moving her lips slowly Regan's.

"Although, I... I suppose one more... couldn't hurt......"

On that note, after giving Regan ample enough of a warning to back away if she wanted to, Ruby closed her eyes as their lips made contact again for the third time that evening.

This one however, didn't just last a few brief seconds. It was originally meant to, yes, but after two brief moments euphoria Ruby wasn't going to let this one end so soon. And whilst she did eventually pull back, it was only so that she could allow them both to catch their breath before resuming it with twice the vigour as before.

If there was one aspect about her relationship with Brian that she was now beginning to appreciate, it was that it had given her plenty of experience when it came to kissing. Experience which Regan seemed to lack, although for what she seemed lack in experience she made up for with enthusiasm. Nevertheless, Ruby took it upon herself to lead, and as their kiss gradually grew in passion she slowly placed her hand behind the back of Regan's head and tilted her own slightly to the left so that she could take their kiss in a more open mouthed direction, although she resisted the small voice in her head that demanded that she made good use of her tongue. Last thing she wanted to do was intimidate Regan by taking things too far too early.

After almost a minute or so this, the two were briefly interrupted as Regan accidentally slipped onto her back, with Ruby falling over and landing on top of her. After sharing brief laugh, the two paused for a moment, with Regan pinned against her bed as Ruby moved up into a more comfortable position. After gazing into her eyes for a good few seconds, a warm smile found itself on Ruby's face as she moved a stray hair that was covering one of Regan's eyes, and before long she had bent over and picked things up from where they had left off.

By this point, all remaining doubts had been thoroughly shredded up, grinded into a fine powder, and emptied into a endless whirlpool of assuredness. No doubt about it, Ruby liked the ladies, and by god she was loving every minutes of it. Why the hell was she trying to make up excuses earlier? It wasn't as if there was anything particularly taboo about it, especially here in Seattle. Sure, her parents would be in for a big surprise when she finally tells them, but hey. Besides, she hadn't had this much fun since... Well, ever.

Sadly though, all good things must come to an end, although in this case if it weren't for outside influences they probably would have carried on like this indefinitely. She was in the middle of wondering whether or not she should take this any further when she heard the footsteps, her lips slowly parting away from Regan's as she tried to ascertain whether or not they were about to be interrupted. Sure enough, the voice of Regan's mother rang out, and Ruby wasted no time in getting off her 'friend' to allow her to speak.

Her heart was still beating fast as Regan spoke with her mother, her hand reaching up to wipe sweat from her brow. How long had they been kissing for? It must of lasted a good three or five minutes, maybe even more. Either way, regardless of what she had said before, there was definitely no way she could claim that was just a 'harmless little kiss'.

Once they were convince that Regan's mother was out of earshot, Ruby turned to face the girl she had just made out with and sighed deeply.

Thankfully, whilst Ruby was more-or-less speechless, Regan's enthusiasm was more than enough to bring a smile to her face.

Once her heart had slowed down to a less frenetic pace, Ruby breathed a sigh of relief as she fell back on the bed beside Regan, her eyes staring up at the ceiling as she listened to what Regan had to say. The more Regan went on about this being the most awesome night of her life, the more Ruby was inclined to agree with her. Despite her doubts, she couldn't remember the last time she'd ever had so much fun in one night. They hadn't even done anything particularly raunchy. Sure, it was probably the most genuinely passionate kiss she'd ever shared with someone, but nevertheless that was but only of the reasons why it had felt so great. There was something so liberating about it. Something that made Ruby feel as though for the first time in years she was finally free to do what she wanted.

Sure, at first it had felt a little strange being so intimate with one of her closest friends, especially seeing as she was also a girl and all. Now that she was beginning to get used to the concept, she couldn't think of anyone else she'd rather be with. Admittedly, now that she thought about it there were a few other girls she knew whom she found physically attractive, but not near;y on the same emotional scale as her feelings towards Regan. She didn't just want Regan because she found her attractive (Although it did certainly help). She wanted her because she... Well, as cheesy as it sounds, loved her.

"This is easily the best night of my life. So far, I mean. I'm sure something could along to top, but I'd assume you'd be involved in that too, probably. But, for now, best night of my life."

"Yeah... Remember what I said earlier today? About how things with Brian never really felt right? Well, lets just say... What we just did? THAT felt right. Like, really... REALLY right. Like, so right that it's practically left, or... I don't know, you get what I mean."

She sighed, her thoughts briefly drifting back to Brian. It was only at that point that it occurred to her that not only did she find out her ex-boyfriend had a thing for other guys, but that she herself had a thing for members of the same sex too. It was such strange coincidence that for a moment she almost started to wonder whether she really had been dreaming all this time. Well, if that's the case, I better not wake up any time soon.

"Wow, I uh... Can't say I ever really saw this coming. I mean, I suppose the thought had struck me once or twice, but I never seriously considered it you know? Seems really obvious now that I think about it..."

At that point, she turned over onto her side to face Regan, her lips forming a warm smile.

"I mean... We've always been close friends. More than friends really. I'm surprised I hadn't realised that I felt this way much sooner. I mean, all the signs were there clear as day. Your cute smile, the way you always know how to make me laugh... I don't think I've ever felt this way about anyone before."

As she reached her hand out to caress Regan's cheek, another thought occurred to her. What if Regan didn't feel the same way? Sure, she was definitely attracted, but that didn't nessisarily mean that she had similar feelings towards her. For all she knew, Regan might only be interested in her physically, rather than on a more emotional level.

Ruby was more than relieved to hear that Regan requited her feelings, her lips forming a warm smile to extinguish any doubts Regan had as to whether or not Ruby really did feel the same about her.

Well, now that they had both established that they had genuine feelings for one another, the next thought to cross Ruby's mind was where things would go from there. After all, they can't really go back to being just friends, not after more-or-less professing their feelings for one another. That said, it wasn't that long ago that Ruby was still technically Brian's girlfriend. Surely it'd be best to wait a while before jumping into another relationship? Let her thoughts sink in a little, actually think about this before making any definite decisions.

Then again, what other decisions were there for her to make? Pretend like this never happened? Spend the rest of her life in doubt whilst exchanging awkward glances with Regan? It wasn't as if they would be persecuted by society for being in a relationship. This was Seattle for Christ's sake! There were probably more homosexual couples here than in the rest of the USA combined, with the exception of San Francisco. The fact of the matter was, she already knew what she wanted. The only question was whether or not that's what Regan wanted too.

"Sooo... I, guess this means we're no longer 'just friends' anymore."

Wait, nono, that didn't come out right. Damnit Ruby!

"I-I mean, if you want to just stay friends, that's fine by me! I'm not trying force you into any commitments or anything! It's just that... Well, it's obvious that we both like each other, right? And not just in a 'I think you're super hot' kind of way either, although I can't deny that it certainly... Um, helps."

She paused for a moment, trying to think of the best way to get her thoughts across before finally continuing.

"What I'm trying to say is... If you want to just stay friends, i'm okay with that. I can't exactly blame you if you wanted some time to let all this sink in a little. But... If you want to, you know, be MORE than just friends I'd be okay with that too. More than okay, really, not that I'd be hurt if you wanted some time to think about it."

It was at that point that Ruby realised that she was holding Regan's hand, her cheeks turning red a little as she gazed into Regan's eyes.

"But just so you know, whenever you feel like you're ready, I'll be here waiting for you."